Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power wins deal to build Egypt’s 4.8 GW nuclear plant

Atomstroyexport (ASE), a subsidiary of Russia’s state-owned nuclear company Rosatom, has subcontracted to South Korea’s nuclear power operator Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power for a deal worth KRW3tn (US$2.25bn) to provide materials and help build the four 1.2 GW reactors at the El Dabaa nuclear plant in Egypt. Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power signed the contract with ASE in Cairo on 25 August 2022 over the field of nuclear power plant equipment and turbine construction for the nuclear plant.

This contract implies that South Korea will work on a large-scale nuclear power plant for the first time since 2009, when the country participated in the construction of the Barakah nuclear power plant in the United Arab Emirates.

In July 2022, Rosatom started building the first unit of the 4.8 GW nuclear power plant located in the city of El Dabaa in the Matruh province on the Mediterranean coast, about 300 km northwest of Cairo. In 2017, Egypt signed contracts with Rosatom for its first nuclear power plant, made up of four VVER-1200 units. The total cost is estimated at US$30bn, of which US$25bn could be lent by the Russian government. The Russian company will supply nuclear fuel over the plant's lifetime of 60 years, provide operation and maintenance services during the ten first year of operation, build a special storage facility and supply containers for storing used nuclear fuel. A site approval permit was granted by ENRRA in April 2019. South Africa is currently the only African nation with commercial nuclear power.